Natsume and the Sakura Tree
by scouting legionnaire
Summary: Natsume discovers an ancient magical tree unknown to humans that is haunted by a wandering youkai, Aimi, in which she pleads for Natsume's help to teach her how to become human again. Out of sympathy, Natsume reluctantly puts himself in an unwanted position. However, he later immerses himself in a journey of finding his inner peace with the help of his newfound friend.


Chapter 1: The Presence of Something Should Not Be

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Gliding effortlessly through the woods, a grey youkai with a penetrating eye drew out its elongated tongue. Its corpselike hands stretched, while its tongue trailed ahead of its tail. It speaks,"Natsume… Why are you running away from me, Natsume... I just want to have a little taste!" Echoes of a demented laugh resonated into Natsume's ears as he ran frantically through the moist foliage. Puddle after puddle, his shoes soaked into the muddy water, imprinting tracks of haste. Looking up above at the towering canopy, he searched through the crevices where the morning light seeps._ I... I can't seem to find a way out._ Drops of dew trickled on his forehead which slid across his nose; with his sleeve, he wiped the dew from his eyes. Drenched and without a direction, Natsume pushed through the dense leafage, exhaling breaths of vapor.

The woods was silent and still. Birds were nowhere to be heard or found. Only the haunting echoes of the youkai reverberated throughout the emptiness, which shuddered the frail leaflets with a gust of dread. Expelled from its gaping mouth, it resumes its death call,"Natsume... I can see you!" Without having to turn around, his heart was already in panic. He gasped for air as his legs began to shake. For how long Natsume was engulfed in this desperate chase, he was unconscious of it. Nevertheless, he knew he could not run much longer. The fleeting glimpses of trees flew past behind him like still pictures in an unceasing nightmare.

Peering behind, Natsume caught sight of the approaching youkai. Swaying its tongue violently in the air, it streams savagely with its hands outstretched, unflinching. A burrow in the soft earth, his foot got caught. In a turbulent roll, his body was thrust and shoved into the bemired soil. Sprawled with his fingers dug deep into the muck, his face was soddened and his body prostrated. Not far behind, the youkai unleashed a bloodless scream,"You are mine now!"

In a daze, Natsume gradually opened his eyes. He had been greatly thrown off balance from the fall that he could barely raise his chest. The tormenting howls of the youkai drew closer. Tasting the air with its tongue, the scent of blood made the youkai more voracious._ Shigeru-san... Touko-san... No... No!... I don't want to die._ Defeating his pain, elbowing through the slush, he pulled his body up with all his might. While straightening his back, he glanced at something peculiar ahead. Natsume teetered and tottered, wiping mud from his forehead, his vision had finally cleared.

Gouged on the surface of a mountainous rock, was a dark hole large enough for a person to hide. Beyond the mossy carpets and the curtain of vines that entwined and sprouted through the cracks, were undulating piles of colossal rubble. Natsume was at a dead end. Turning around, he saw the youkai blasting through the trees, heading at full speed. Eyes fixed, its tongue dangling in the wind. It laughs in hysteria,"You've got no where to run, Natsume!" Grinding his teeth, clenching his fist, he sprinted to his only escape. Enraged, the youkai bellowed, "You have nowhere to run!" At its ultimate burst, the youkai pierced through the air, clawing within threads of Natsume's collar._ I have to make it!_ Before the youkai could even scratch his neck, he slid into the hole and vanished.

Crouched in a corner, lay Natsume panting in relieve. Between the slits of the veil of veins which curtained the hole, he peeked at the confused youkai thrashing about in bewilderment,"Where are you! Where are you! I can still smell you!" Inspecting his soiled clothes, he noticed a blooming red streak on his left knee. Apparently, he had been grazed from the fall. Throughout the time of his hiding, his eyes carefully followed the trail of the youkai's tongue. His heart palpitating whenever it got too close to the hole. Oddly, Natsume realized that the hole wasn't as small as to be inconspicuous to have been overlooked. Since the youkai chased him here, it should have seen him slipping into the rock. _Why. _"Natsume! Come out! I know you are still here!"

Air in the void was damp and cold. His eyes circled the ceiling with knees tucked to his shoulders. Meanwhile, the youkai hissed and paced restlessly along the entrance of the hole. "You can't hide forever, Natsume!" Recovering his strength, Natsume relaxed his legs, impressing his feet into the soft soil. His back leaning against the cool stone wall, he resolved to wait before he takes another sprint for his life. Calm and rested, he thought that the hole would make a decent home for a boar to live in. He smiled at the idea of a contented animal hibernating here during the winter. Muting his chuckle with his fist, something twinkled in the corner of Natsume's eye. From the unlit side of the stone wall, blinking, was a tiny eyelet of light no bigger than his thumb. Inquisitive, he quietly left his corner and crawled towards the opposing wall. Stopping before a boundary of light, he stretched his right hand. Extending his fingers, Natsume gently brushed the rim of the eyelet... but he couldn't feel anything. _Maybe it's further in the back. _He leaned forward, his body immersed deeper into the shadows, his hand stretching to its limit. _I... I can't seem to feel anything. _

Startled, Natsume backed away to his corner. _A youkai! _Buried beneath the soil, he grabbed a pebble. Within the tight space, he thew the rock as hard and as far as he could. Panting in fear, he waited anxiously for the slightest response. Hushed and the dark the wall remained, the boundary of light untouched. Nothing of the unknown emerged, nor the sound of the trundling rock echoed. At the baffled boy, the tiny eyelet of light blinked.

Confused, knee by knee, Natsume cautiously crept. Ahead, the eyelet of light beamed, unmoved by his concern. Mustering his courage, he placed both hands beyond the boundary. Crawling deeper, his body swallowed into the darkness. Breaths of vapor permeate the air, the soil braced by the hands of a boy. Natsume crawled steadily towards the eye. With each knee forward, the more brilliant the eye blinked. He stopped. Amidst the unknown, he had to make sure. Staring at the eyelet, Natsume cleared his throat and spoke,"Hello!" Waves of voices propagate through the tunnel before receding to whispers of a hello. His eyes widened in utter surprise. _In a rock! _

Squinting at the eyelet, he tried to peer through. In his many dangerous encounters, Natsume has developed a keen sense of feeling the subtle presences of youkais without actually having to see them. He can also tell apart whether a being is human or a youkai; one having an aura like his own, while the other is beyond this world. He begins to sense something. Unable to catch a glimpse, its blinding light concealed whatever it guarded within it. Natsume leaned closer, and not because he wanted to peek. Sliding one knee through the earth, he stretched his neck. The feeling got stronger. He had never felt this kind of presence before. Confounded, Natsume wasn't able to distinguish. _...A youkai? _Not quite. Furrowing his eyebrows, he pushed the other knee and his pupils began to dilate. With his eyes transfixed before the light, he gasped in shock. _No... It can't be..._ In a sudden flash, a great glow of auroral blue burst through the hole of the rock. Natsume turned around, and the shrill of the dreaded youkai echoed throughout the tunnel.


End file.
